Emulation
Amiga Computers:
UAE
UAE is a
mostly complete software emulation of the hardware of the Commodore
Amiga 500/1000/2000.
Commodore Computers:
VICE
The current version
emulates the C64, the C128, the VIC20, all the PET models (except the
SuperPET 9000, which is out of line anyway), the PLUS4 and the CBM-II
(aka C610).
Macintosh:
Basilisk
II
Basilisk II is an Open Source 68k Macintosh emulator. That
is, it allows you to run 68k MacOS software on your computer, even if
you are using a different operating system.
Free
OSes
6502-Based:
GeckOS/A65
Operating System
OS/A65 is a full-featured
Multitasking/Multithreading operating system for the 6502. It is
preemptive and implements some Unix-like features, like signals,
semaphores, relocatable fileformat, standard library, internet support
via a kind of simplified sockets and last but not least virtual
consoles.
Educational:
GeekOS
GeekOS is in a
very early stage of development, so don’t expect it to do anything
useful. However, if you’re interested in operating systems development
and are looking for a simple OS kernel to experiment with, GeekOS might
be what you’re looking for.
Historically Significant:
Genera OS
This was
the operating system that ran on the
Symbolics
Lisp
Machines. It was reported to have a simply awe-inspiring development
environment. It is still in use in animation houses and as a development
environment.
Independant:
NewOS
NewOS is a open source
operating system with an emphasis on design and portability. It is
largely implemented in C/C++, with a small amount of assembly.
Note: NewOS is used as the basis for
Danger’s Hiptop
device.
nix:
NetBSD
NetBSD is a free,
secure, and highly portable Unix-like Open Source operating system
available for many platforms…
Programming Language
Oddities
Minimalist:
Brainfck
Müller’s
goal was to create a simple Turing-complete programming language which
could be implemented with the smallest possible compiler.
Some interesting projects have come out of
Brainf*ck, namely: a Huffman coded version named
Spoon and a
BF
computer.
More to come…
-m